1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to systems and methods for managing survey answers from multiple sources. In particular, although not exclusively, methods are described to receive answers to surveys conducted by multiple survey sources, in a format such that the survey answers may be aggregated notwithstanding their separate sources; additionally, survey participants may identify themselves after the fact, to edit their earlier answers and associate those answers with a user account.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is common practice to survey customers of a business and determine the quality of the business' goods and services, along with other opinions of the customers about the business. Survey results may be useful either to the reviewed businesses, who may use the information to find areas for improvement, or to the public, who may use the aggregated information to compare businesses and make informed decisions about which to frequent. Surveys may also be used to collect opinions on non-business subjects, such as the popularity of a pending legislative bill, which could influence the actions or words of political figures regarding that bill.
The introduction of the Internet has allowed for two common, and frequently related, improvements on surveys. First, survey answers may be collected online; that is, an online form may allow entry of answers which will be submitted to a database. The convenience of this system increases the likelihood that a surveyed customer will complete and submit the survey. Second, a database of all survey answers may be accessed online, with the data conveniently organized and arranged by preference of the accessing party. This is especially useful for public access purposes, as the public has come to expect the Internet to be the primary source for any information they could desire.
It may be desirable to combine the efforts of multiple third party survey sources, who may be able to collect survey answers from different groups of people in different circumstances depending on their respective resources. In some cases, it may also be permissible and desirable to use answers from a pre-existing survey. However, this can complicate aggregation of the survey answers, as different survey sources may have their own surveys with distinct questions. Computer automation normally complicates this issue rather than resolves it, as an automated system is generally not flexible enough to merge differing content. A system that can aggregate these surveys into a uniform set of data is therefore desirable.
Survey answers are frequently anonymous and, for convenience, might not require an identification process of any sort. For instance, a survey might be submitted online but without using a login process, or the initial survey answer might have been provided in paper or other analog form and converted to a digital form later. Additionally, when a survey answer is transferred from a third party survey source, identifying details such as a login may prove inconvenient, impractical, or even impossible to transfer with the answer. However, it may be desirable to edit a survey answer after submission, and it is important that only the participant who provided a given survey answer be able to edit that answer. A method for limiting editing control to that participant, even without an existing and associated login, is therefore desirable.